Immersion
by theweepinglawnchairs
Summary: Artemis thought she'd left that life behind. But when old friends ask for one last favour, She must make a decision, one that will force her to leave the world she knows behind, Thrusting her into a position that will endanger her life, only to have failure ultimately threaten the lives of those she loves most. Will she survive the ultimate test?
1. The Past Comes Knocking

**A/N: This was an idea that came out of the blue. Got to love late night sessions. We were so excited, it was borderline psychotic. Think Aang with no sleep. Now picture that with a pen and paper in hand. CRAZY. What started out as a one shot is now a multichapter fic. This is all about Spitfire. Set after "Depths" with memories of past events. So get ready to go nuts! And PLEASE REVIEW. WE cannot stress this enough. Crticism good or bad is always needed and appreciated so enjoy! We don't own DC, Greg Weisman or any of the YJ characters. Though Wally still makes a cameo in our dreams. Now go, read, enjoy! ;)**

xxxx

She opened the door slowly, fearful of what was to greet her.

It was dark. She fumbled for the light, only to drop her keys on the floor. In a flash, Spitfire came running towards her, barking and wagging its tail.

"Hey big guy, what's up?" She bent down on her knees and scratched its ears. It happily licked her face. She laughed softly and kicked the door closed with her foot. She stood up, keys in hand and tiptoed to the kitchen, carefully stepping over the squeaky floorboards. She didn't want to wake him.

The apartment was bathed in a beryl glow. It was calming yet unnerving at the same time.

Opening the fridge she took out some leftovers from the previous day. "Cold Pizza. Yum." Taking out a plate from the cupboard, she settled on the island, her eyes fixed on the gloomy abyss that surrounded her. The dog sat at her feet, staring. It whined softly. "Fine." She muttered. "You have the pepperoni, I don't like it anyway." The dog ran to the cold meat that littered the floor and chomped gleefully. "One down, one to go." She mumbled sadly.

This week had been hard. With no lead on who the Light was, or their new partner, and with dozens of kids being kidnapped off the street for nefarious purposes, Nightwing needed a new plan. Having Kaldur'ahm undercover wasn't enough. They weren't getting anywhere. Someone was going to have to make a sacrifice. One that would change the lives of many. She'd met with Dick at Gotham's City Hall, away from the rest of the League and outside attention.

That hadn't gone the way she planned.

"_Artemis!" She looked up, spotting him a few feet in front of her. "This way." _

_Dick smiled, leading her to a room off the corner. Out of sight. She stood in front of the door. Dick graciously held it open for her. Artemis rolled her eyes. "Always the gentleman still." She mused. _

_The room was small and crowded, overflowing with books. "So, I'm guessing you didn't call me to organize the crime files?" Dick's smile faded, replaced with a solemn frown. "I'm afraid not." His voice was grim "I- I need you to suit up and rejoin the team." Artemis laughed nervously. "That's it?" she exclaimed. "Sure, the team could use someone who can kick your sorry butt." Dick swallowed. "Yeah, the thing is- it's only temporary." She nodded, her eyes glazed with a new found confidence. "I know." A sick silence fell between them. _

_Dick gritted his teeth, "What I'm about to tell you,** cannot**, leave this room. Understand?" _

_Artemis studied his face. He was dead serious. The time for petty jokes was over. " Okay," she quipped. "Shoot." Dick sighed and rubbed his temples. "Do you remember when Tula died?" She nodded, but remained silent. "Well when Kaldur left the team and suited up with Black Manta, he wasn't in it for villainous pursuits; rather he was in it for the team. He went undercover, and still is. With the Justice League demolished and not a single lead on who or what The Light is, desperate times called for desperate measures."_

_Artemis stood there speechless. _

"_What do you need me for?" she managed to spit out._

_ Dick sighed, running his hands through his hair. "Kaldur is __**so **__close to getting intel on The Light but he's being tested" he paused. _

_"And where do I fit in all this?" she queried. A low whistle escaped his lips. "Well… you need to be out of the picture." "Permanently."__Her brow furrowed in confusion. Dick sighed. "There's some gossip floating around about a new miscreant in town. A new Huntress, someone who happens do some dirty work for those involved with The Light. Black Manta is very intrigued about meeting her."_

_ Artemis cut him off. "Dick, you're rambling, what do you need __**me **__for?" Dick nodded. "Right." "In order for Kaldur to get that vital intel, he needs to pass a final test. One that will prove that he has no attachment or regard for any of us, the team, or justice." His voice cracked. _

_"In order for that to happen, you have to disappear. Forever. Artemis Crock can no longer exist."_

_Artemis's eyes widened. She stumbled back, crashing into the bookcase behind her. Dick ran over to her. "Are you alright?" He reached for her hand. She coiled back, repulsed. "DON'T- don't you dare __**touch**__ me!" Dick raised his hands in retreat. He stepped away slowly, watching as she composed herself. Gingerly, she stood up, nursing her sore hip. _

"_Are you freaking crazy?" she screamed. "This has to be some sort of joke! You want me to rejoin the team just so I can be the disposable heroic MARTYR! What is wrong with you?" Artemis found herself overcome with an uncomfortable feeling. __One that she had buried deep in her subconscious a long time ago.__ It was then, in this tiny closet of a room that she realized she was afraid. Afraid of what was to come, afraid to leave what she had behind. "Can you imagine the team?" She rambled. "And what about-, what would he…." Her voice trailed off. Dick took her silence as an opportunity. "Wally." She nodded, her eyes staring blankly at the floor. "I-I, he can't- he __**can't**__. Without me…" she spluttered. "NO!" She wiped her face with her sleeve. _

_She never cried. Until now. _

_Dick exhaled gruffly. "Artemis, I'm not asking you to voluntary agree to your own murder, Kaldur's just going to pierce you with a neurotoxin, The nematocysts will only temporarily stop your heart. You'll still be alive!" he pleaded. She glowered at him. "But I won't be, will I?" she contested. "I WON'T be Artemis! I won't be me!" _

_Dick bit his lip, growing angrier by the second. "We have bigger problems Artemis!" he urged. The Justice League has gone awol, villains are gaining the upper hand as we speak, __**innocent**__ citizens lives are at stake! We NEED __answers NOW!" he took a breath. "You. Have. No. Choice." _

_Artemis looked at him, analyzing the situation at hand, the position he was in. The anger she felt instantly dissipated. "I know." She confessed. "Take a few days, whatever you need to do, do. Take some time for yourself." Artemis scoffed. "That's funny coming from the guy who cleverly plotted my death." Dick chuckled grimly. "Yeah." Artemis headed towards the door. Her palm on the handle. She needed to think. Alone. _

"_Artemis?" _

_She turned her head. Dick put a hand on her shoulder. _

"_We'll laugh about this someday."_

_xxxx_

**AN: And so it begins! Don't you worry, Wally WILL BE in the next chapter, ANGST, ROMANCE and ANGER will all also make an appearance. This is a spitfire fic, after all!**


	2. Instigate

**A/N: Hi EVERYBODY! All the credit for this story goes to Greg Weisman and his amazing imagination, DC and all the other important people who aren't me. **

The windows flung open with a loud, "THAWP!"

Artemis snapped to attention.

Hand on her heart she sat there frozen, listening for the slightest movement, anything out of the ordinary. "It's just the wind." she murmured, not completely reassuring herself. She jumped off the bar stool, landing gracefully onto the hardwood floor. A loud yawn escaped her lips. She glanced at her watch, 1:45 red numbers glared into her weary eyes. She wondered how long she'd been sitting there, lost in her own head.

Defeated, she trudged her way up the stairs. Their room was cool, a small relief from the staggering heat that continued to plague the city. She tiptoed to the bathroom, turned on the tap and splashed her face. Wiping her hands on her knees, she exited and settled on the window, her mind racing.

A draft wafted through the room. She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply down into her lungs, the air weaving through her body. Sighing contently she opened her eyes, fixed on the moon.

It seemed to stare at her, peering, into her soul, unearthing all her darkest secrets.

When had everything become so complicated? If Wally was awake he would have laughed. He always teased her about that, saying that she was the definition of complicated. Then again, everything about her was, her bloodlines, her motivations, her perturbed sense of calm- even their relationship.

_Their_ relationship.

A ghostly smile hid in the corners of her lips. They'd been through some rough times through the past five years, but it was all worthwhile especially when she thought back to their first kiss.

While M'gann teased her mercilessly for weeks on end about how Wally had scooped her up like some scene out of Casablanca, that wasn't what she remembered. In fact, for her it was all a blur, except- except that brief moment when their lips touched. All of the walls they'd built around themselves, every morsel of anger, hate and animosity they had towards each other was instantly stripped away.

The faint spark between them, out in the open, bare for the entire world to see, ignited into a blazing fire. Passion held them in its grip, consumed them. Dick must've said "Someone's getting traught_ tonight_." ten times before they parted simply to glare at him.

It was hard to believe that was five years ago. So much had changed.

Even the chaos of the past seemed trivial in contrast to the battles of today.

How was she going to tell him? What would she even say?

_"Hey Wally, I know we gave up the whole hero thing to live like normal people but I'm not normal, we're not"- _

That woudn't work.

_ "Hey Wally, I know we gave up the hero gig to be together but your best friend wants me to die so I can risk my life by going deep undercover with Kaldur, Because he's not the conniving, backstabbing psycho we all thought he was, and I think Dick wants me to tag along?" _

Artemis smacked her forward with the palm of her hand. Right, because that conversation would go _so_ smoothly. Crushed, she retreated to bed. Staring at the ceiling she prayed silently that this was all a dream. Tomorrow she'd wake up, workout and then bike to school, and everything would be as it should. Or should it?

It wasn't like she ever forgot the feeling of an arrow quivering in its helm ready to strike, Or how her body ached with adrenaline at the sight of a good fight_. "This is what he wanted, we wanted", _she thought. Right?

She turned her head and watched as his chest rose and fell, deep in the clutches of slumber. Rolling over onto her stomach she loomed over him, taking in his fiery mop of hair, his outlandishly long lashes, the faint freckles that dotted his cheeks and finally his lips, always chapped but somehow soft.

While she'd never admit out loud to anyone, she thought Wally quite handsome. She cradled into him, feeling his muscles tense underneath her. "What am I going to do?" she whispered. Maybe the moon would give her an answer-but for now, all she could do was wait.

xxx

Artemis blearily opened her eyes and stumbled out of bed into the hall. Leaning against the wall, she clutched her head in her hands. Deciding whether or not to throw herself out of the balcony window in desperation. She didn't want to bring up the whole hero issue, not today.

"So, you're planning on staying there the entire day then?" She opened her eyes, a lazy smirk was plastered on his face. Wally picked his books off the table and put them in his bag. "You are hilarious." she mused.

"Where you off to?"

He cocked an eyebrow, but the smirk remained. "It's Friday. I have work at the lab remember?" She nodded, absentmindedly watching as he slung his bag over his shoulder and closed the door behind him. A wave of relief washed over her, though it felt more like a bad case of nausea. She treaded to the kitchen and poured herself a desperately needed shot of caffeine. The tv blared unintelligibly.

Her phone suddenly blasted its merry tune. She rocketed from where she stood, only to have the number read as long distance. Not once, but twice. "Stupid salesmen." She groaned. At that exact moment, the doorbell rang incessantly. Livid, she stormed down the hall to the door, opened it and screamed.

"GET off my PORCH dammit! I AM NOT interested!"

An amused voice greeted her.

"Now, usually I get girls begging me to come in, this must be an off day."

Artemis's eyes widened as she realized who it was.

"Dick! What the hell do you want?" she cried.

He grinned. "Nothing." "Just making a house call." "Nice shirt by the way."

Artemis looked down at her Batman logoed t-shirt and replied with a slap."Oww!" he barked touching his cheek gingerly."Just returning the goodwill Dic-k." she replied.

"Still vile?" he queried. She raised her brow. "I dunno Wonder Bird, still a dweeb?"He chuckled.

"You haven't changed a bit."

"Not since yesterday." She spat back.

Seemingly pleased with her answer he sauntered through the door and into the apartment.

xxx


End file.
